


touch

by toglidethroughlife (mintmarshmallow)



Category: Fallen Hero Series - Malin Rydén
Genre: Drabble, F/M, M/M, Second person POV, delete later maybe idk asldfjka, gender neutral sidestep - Freeform, i dont actually know how to rate this, spoilers if you haven't read the retribution alpha, theres a slight implication of sex
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-28
Updated: 2020-06-28
Packaged: 2021-03-04 03:21:31
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 524
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24962938
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mintmarshmallow/pseuds/toglidethroughlife
Summary: Your first instinct has always been to recoil.To brush it away and to deflect. To retreat to your world of solitude and darkness, where being alone means they can’t hurt you, and touch means nothing because you tell yourself as much.You don’t want it, you don’t need it.(You’re numb anyway, so what does it matter, right?)But then Daniel happened.Danny.And suddenly, touch was warm, touch was honest. Touch conveyed more than words — your words — ever could.
Relationships: Herald/Sidestep (Fallen Hero)
Comments: 3
Kudos: 16





	touch

Your first instinct has always been to recoil.

To brush it away and to deflect. To retreat to your world of solitude and darkness, where being alone means they can’t hurt you, and touch means nothing because you tell yourself as much.

_You don’t want it, you don’t need it._

(You’re numb anyway, so what does it matter, right?)

But then Daniel happened.

_Danny_.

And suddenly, touch was warm, touch was honest. Touch conveyed more than words — your words — ever could.

You remember how it first started — his hand on the small of your back, soft, nervous maybe, never lingering for too long… but long enough that you feel the imprint long after his hand has left your skin, a gentle reminder that he’s _here_ with _you_.

You remember accidentally twining your fingers with his, how easily your hand fit in the space of his, how tempting it was to leave it there… and how terrifying it was that you thought that.

You remember how his arms comforted you, sheltered you when you bared yourself to him, showed him the truth behind the mask — this mask that he’s looked up to, idolized even — and instead of running away, he held you tighter, brought you closer to his chest until the shaking stopped and an unfamiliar calm took its place.

_… acceptance._

Is that what it was? You never thought you would find it in this lifetime, let alone in his touch, but it was impossible to deny the care with which he cradled your face in his palm, the softness with which he kissed your lips, and the sure and steady beat of his heart against your chest.

_He’s here with you… and he wants to stay._

When did you even begin to want his touch? To crave it?

Was it when his hands traced every line on your body, his lips following suit, your foreheads pressed together like your bodies were, chasing bliss? Or was it in the moments after, when the nightmares came back to haunt you, to drag you back into the darkness, and he just held you, lips whispering assurances against your skin, the hand in the small of your back your anchor to this world, to this reality where he loves you… and you let him?

When did you let yourself drown in him? In the feeling of him?

And when did it start to feel comfortable? Safe?

Touch was something that you had always deemed dangerous. Too personal, too unpredictable, too real. Words you can brush aside and ignore, but touch? Touch is felt in the moment, bringing forward emotions into the physical plane where it’s harder to deny them, forcing you to face truths you thought you’d long buried.

… _you don’t want to be alone_.

Touch is terrifying. It’s always eluded you how much touch is considered a need, until you had a taste of it — felt every embrace, every kiss, every caress — and now you can’t stop wanting more.

Because touch is beautiful. Sheltering, reassuring, awakening.

It reminds you you’re alive. You’re real. And he loves you.

(… and you hope it shows that you love him too.)


End file.
